John
Hagel III, John Seely Brown, and Lang Davison, authors of The Power of Pull,
defines edges this way.

“Edges
are places that become fertile ground for innovation because they spawn new
unmet needs and unexploited capabilities and attract people who are risk
takers. Edges therefore become significant drivers or knowledge create and
economic growth, challenging and ultimately transforming traditional
arrangements and approaches.”

“Edgecraft
is a methodical, measurable process that allows individuals and teams to
inexorably identify the soft innovation that live on the edges of what already
exists.”

So
in one sense the “edge” is that place where what you do in education meets
ideas, knowledge, and needs of what others do outside education transforming
the core of your school or classroom.In another sense, the “edge” is an innovation of what you are already
doing in your school or classroom that is so far from the current reality that
it becomes remarkable.

Ideas
from outside and or remarkable innovations from inside can be, as the author of ThinkerToys creativity
expert Michael
Michalko would advise, “SCAMPERed” (Substituted,
Combined, Adapted, Modified, Put to other purpose, Eliminated, or Rearranged)
into powerful ideas and innovations.

Chart inspired from Seth Godin

Edge

Network

KWOK- Know What Others KnowShare what you know with others. Learn what you can from others. Get outside of education and bring back ideas that will work in education. Understand the power of the network to bring new ideas from outside in. Become the Twitter of schools.

Ergonomics and Design

Change the look of the school and or classroom. Put couches or bean bags in your lounge. Use special paint so students and teachers can write on the walls. Change your office to better suit parents. Rearrange the desks in the classroom to create more collaboration. Think about the ergonomics and design of your school. Be the Herman Miller or IDEO of schools.

Make It Noticeable

Make everything a work of art the tells the world who you are. Show off the learning. Put it online, podcast it, videocast it, or SlideShare it. Make the learning noticeable and people will notice you. Become the Etsy of schools.

The Senses

Display something beautiful or thought provoking, make the school smell good, bring food that tastes good, put on some great music, use some furniture that feels good. Hook into the senses. Become the Starbucks of schools.

Time

Manipulate time. Add time here and take it away from there. Give the gift of time to a teacher. Turn your staff meeting into a speed dating meeting for ideas. Find some creative ways to "waste time." Give teachers an entire staff meeting to choose a problem of their choice and work on it. Become the Google of schools.

Emotion

Hook emotion into your work. Make someone laugh. Surprise and thrill someone. Make them angry to take action. Empathize. Inspire someone. Just do it. Become the Nike of schools.

Technology

Use technology that makes work easier to share, collaborate, and communicate with others. Prepare for and begin discussing the technology that will be, not what is. It's about the user not the hardware. Make technology simple. Become the Apple of schools.

Marketing

Learn how to "sell" ideas by making them memorable. Learn how to connect through ideas. Make your ideas "stick." Become the Chip and Dan Heath of schools.

Safety

Make things safer than people would expect. Become the Qantas Airlines of schools.

Differentiate

Give student, teacher, and parent just what they need in the way they need it. Customize the school. Become the "Amazon Recommends" of schools.

The System

Change the system, modify the system, or adapt new ideas and technologies to the system. You can change how you deliver instruction in a way that people will demand and expect from then on. Become the Netflixof schools.

Interactive

Involve parents in ways they never expected. Involve students in ways they never expected. Give them immediate feedback so changes can be made immediately. Give them a say. Become the Threadless of schools.

Do Less

Do more by doing less. Let parents and students do more. Let the district do more. Let volunteers do more. Empower others to do for themselves and the school. Become the Salvation Army of schools.

Change the "Who"

Bring the office manager into the classroom to work with the students. Have a teacher run the school for a day. Let the student teach the lesson. Involve others in new ways. Change who does what and you will change their perspectives. Become the Wikipedia of schools

Fix What Is Broken

Don't ignore it, fix it. Be willing to spend time on fixing even the little things. Little things can make a big difference. Believe you can do it. Use soft innovation. Become the Seth Godin of schools.

Make It Cheaper

Drive down the "costs" by becoming uber-recyclers. Reuse- adapt it. Think of better ways to use what already exists. Become the First Solar of schools.

Focus On The Tough Problems

Create a school culture that loves the challenge of solving the tough problems. Let the other schools do the easy stuff. Work on the things that no one is doing because they think it is to hard. Become the Novartis of schools.

The
mash-up of these three concepts provides Lateral Wisdom and Lateral Wisdom is
Education Innovation.